The UAE, represented by the Ministry of Community Development, participated in the first meeting of senior officials from Arab countries that was held yesterday in Cairo, to monitor the implementation of a resolution from an Arab summit, held in Jordan last March, on the outcomes of a ministerial conference on terrorism and social development.

During his speech at the meeting, Hussain Al Sheikh, Social Care Advisor at the Ministry, presented the UAE’s policies and initiatives to face extremism while highlighting the nation’s strategy, since its establishment, to combat terrorism using legislative and legal policies, cultural and religious values, and the media.

He added that the UAE has a range of federal legislations and laws to combat terrorism, including Law No.1 of 2004 on dealing with terrorist crimes, Federal Law No. 39 of 2006 on international judicial cooperation in penal affairs, and Law No. 7 of 2013 on the establishment of Hedaya, the International Centre of Excellence for Countering Violent Extremism.

Regarding the UAE’s religious and cultural values, Al Sheikh said that the General Authority for Islamic Affairs and Endowments is working to promote the values of moderation, co-existence and tolerance in the community, and to moderate the content of religious discourse.

As for the local media and community, he added that the country had established the Sawab Centre, an online interactive initiative, in cooperation with the United States, to counter the online messaging, propaganda and recruitment by the terrorist organisation, Daesh.

Source: Wam